Housekeeping – Neues Museum am See

Showcase Housekeeping

Housekeeping – Anything but simple

The kitchens of the pile dwellings were equipped with a whole range of cooking utensils and tools. It wasn’t just about utility: the dishes made of fired Pottery were often beautifully decorated. Ladles and bowls were carved from wood. Boxes made of bark, bags made of woven tree bast, as well as baskets made of grass were used to transport gathered fruits and to store supplies. Tools made of wood, bone, stone and later metal completed the basic equipment of every household. The smallest cups were the size of a shot glass, the largest water barrel had a capacity of 150 liters.

A1

Winnowing bowl | Rushes, sedges, linden | 3900 BC | Horn-Hornstaad Hörnle | ALM

Winnowing

To separate the wheat from the chaff, the threshed grain is thrown into the air. The chaff is carried away by the wind, while the heavier grains remain in the bowl.

Photo: K. Petersen | alamy

A2

Bowl | Lime wood | 3900 BC | Horn-Hornstaad Hörnle | ALM

A3

Ladle | Wood | 3700 BC | Sipplingen-Osthafen | ALM

A4

Bowl | Wood | 3900 BC | Horn-Hornstaad Hörnle | ALM

A5

Knife | Flint, poplar bark, birch tar| 3000 BC | Unteruhldingen | APM

A6

Knife | Bronze, antler | 900 BC | Unteruhldingen-Stollenwiesen | APM

A7

Pot with sun symbol | Pottery | 3000 BC. | Wangen-Hinterhorn | ALM

A8

Rim shard with sun symbol | Pottery | 3000 BC | Sipplingen-Osthafen | APM

A9

Rim shard with sun symbol | Pottery| 3000 BC | Unteruhldingen-Stollenwiesen | LMW

A10

Fragment of a jar with dotted rows | Pottery | 3900 BC | Horn-Hornstaad Hörnle | ALM

Naturalistically modeled

Reconstruction drawing of a vessel with modeled female breasts and rows of dotted lines.

Illustration: after H. Schlichtherle, ALM

A11

Fragments of a crescent-shaped idols | Pottery | 1000 BC | Bad Buchau-Wasserburg | IVF

Moon idols

Crescent moons or small bull horn symbols are among the more enigmatic objects found in Bronze Age pile dwellings. hey could have functioned as andirons to limit the space and to stack firewood in the hearth. Or maybe they were cult idols which belonged to a house altar used for the cult of the bull or the moon. This theory is supported by the fact that all idols are decorated on just one side.

Photo: F. Müller | APM

B1

Bowl | Pottery | 1000 BC | Bad Buchau-Wasserburg | APM

B2

Beaker with lentil-shaped decorations | Pottery | 3000 BC | Sipplingen-Osthafen | APM

B3

Tulip beaker | Pottery | 3800 BC | Unteruhldingen-Stollenwiesen | LMW

B4

Cup | Pottery | 900 BC | Unteruhldingen-Stollenwiesen | LMW

B5

Feeding cup | Pottery | 1000 BC | Bad Buchau-Wasserburg | IVF

Sip by sip

As early as 3000 years ago, babies were nursing from bottles. Of course, the bottles looked different back then than they do today. ometimes they were shaped like little ducks, sometimes like adult drinking cups. The food was poured into the larger, upward-facing hole. The babies sucked it out sip by sip through the small nipple-shaped spout. By the way: The empty bottle could also serve as a flute or whistle. To do this, the large hole had to be half closed with the fingers while blowing into the spout. ave you ever tried to make a sound by blowing over the rim of an empty bottle?

Illustration: G. Embleton | APM

B6

Jar with handle | Pottery | 3800 BC | Sipplingen-Osthafen | APM

B7

Jar with handle | Pottery | 3900 BC | Taubried | APM

C1

Deep bowl | Pottery | 3000 BC | Sipplingen-Osthafen | APM

C2

Amphora | Pottery | 1000 BC | Bad Buchau-Wasserburg | APM

C3

Hanging vessel with eyelets | Pottery | 3800 BC | Unteruhldingen-Bayenwiesen | APM

C4

Bottle | Pottery | 3800 BC | Sipplingen-Osthafen | APM

C5

Cooking pot | Pottery | 3000 BC | Sipplingen-Osthafen | APM

Useful detail

The small holes below the rim prevented the pot’s contents from boiling over.

D1

Bark box | Lime bark | 3900 BC | Horn-Hornstaad Hörnle | ALM

Well-sewn

Durable boxes of various sizes – with and without lids – could be made using simple means such as birch bark, a bone awl and twine made from tree bast.

Photo: Y. Mühleis | LAD